City walls of Laon

City walls of Laon, Porte de Soissons

The Laon City Wall is a seven-kilometer-long ring of walls that surrounds the historic upper town of Laon . The city wall has been classified as a Monument historique since June 13, 1927 .

Building history

The old town of Laon is on a witness Berg mentioned geological formation at the edge of the Ile-de-France dominates the surrounding plain by about 100 meters. The mountain is made up of layers of sand and clay, rocky parts are made of limestone. The clay is highly water-bearing and feeds a number of springs and wells at the foot of the mountain.

A first wall ring was built in the 9th century and was expanded until the 13th century. Originally the city fortifications consisted of the artificially created dry moat and escarp wall with buttresses, which were reinforced by round or square towers. There were four main gates: Porte Chenizelles, Porte d'Ardon, Porte de Soissons and the Porte de la citadelle.

The Abbey of Saint-Vincent de Laon was located on the southern foothills of the mountain. In 1082, Abbot Adalbero also had the abbey surrounded by a wall in order to separate the monastery district from the city, which in the meantime had grown up to the abbey. Henry IV of Navarre had the citadel built by Estienne Antoine between 1595 and 1598.